


as we wait for the sun to rise

by Timpeni



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-04
Updated: 2016-09-04
Packaged: 2018-08-12 18:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7945279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Timpeni/pseuds/Timpeni
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jaehee didn't anticipate that her first job would entail cat babysitting. Meanwhile, Zen throws his all into a musical, Jumin gives his Elizabeth the 3rd all the pampering in the world, and Rika prepares for a party.</p><p>At some point, they sing a lullaby about waiting for the sun to rise.</p><p>(Pre-canon spoilers, but nothing about post-game/current-game timeline except for vague hints that would be hard to pick up unless you know about them previously. Centered around Jaehee, Zen, and the 2nd RFA party.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	as we wait for the sun to rise

**Author's Note:**

> this was a mistake

Cats have nine lives.

Or at least, that’s what Jaehee tries to tell herself, while desperately tearing out her hair, _begging_ Elizabeth the 3rd to walk back into the apartment, away from the windowsill. She’s gone through college, got a degree she could work with, landed a job with one of the biggest corporations in Korea, and _yet--_

“He...here, kitty, kitty…” She doesn’t know what she’s doing, but whatever it is, it isn’t working. This is the very first job she’s ever held, so when she reported to work, hair gelled back and glasses fixed, she was ready to be the best _yes-man_ the company needed. Her new boss was barely a few years older than her, but he didn’t seem too bad-- professional, proper, calm and with incredible prospects in ahead of him.

At the end of the first week, he said: “Oh, by the way, I’ll be on a business trip over the weekend. Take care of Elizabeth the 3rd for me.” Jaehee looked at him weirdly, but quickly regained her composure, assuming it was just another administrative job, a deal with a foreign-- “Do you know how to take care of cats?”

“Ah?” Remember, _yes-man._ “...Yes.”

“Good. I’ll drop off the food, her bowl and her bed to your apartment. I’m counting on you,” Jumin says, before adding: “I’ll pay you overtime for the whole weekend.”

And it sounded fabulous, back then. Take care of a cute cat for the entire weekend for two days’ worth of overtime? She’s honestly never taken care of a cat before, but the moment she got back home, she downloaded three online guides and watched approximate two hours of videos. She kept all the things a cat could possibly swallow, and thoroughly cat-proofed her tiny apartment into a paradise fit for a queen.

Of course, it just _had_ to get too hot during the afternoon. And so she opened the windowsill, before going into the kitchen to get a drink-- the cat rubbed against her leg, purring, and she smiled at it before it walked out to the living room and _oh god what the fuck._

“Come on, Elizabeth the 3rd… Liz? Liz, Liz--” She doesn’t quite know what Jumin’s deal with this cat is, but seeing that he’s constantly asking for update pictures on how it’s doing, he probably wouldn’t be thrilled at needed an Elizabeth the 4th. The white cat simply tilts it head, balancing on the impeccable windowsill, right next to a sheer drop twenty stories down.

Seriously, if _this_ is how she loses her first job-- how the fuck is that going to look on her resume? ‘Yeah, I took care of a cat for one day, and it kinda fell off a building the height of the Eiffel Tower--’

Jaehee’s phone rings. She screams. Elizabeth meows back at her.

Fumbling into her pockets, Jaehee looks at the screen. It’s Jumin. Of course, she’s been late for her hourly cat report.

Looking at the cat, then back at the phone, she gulps before answering. “Y...yes?”

“How is my Elizabeth doing? You’re two minutes past the 1pm mark,” Jumin deadpans.

“Oh, she’s fine,” Jaehee manages to spit out. That’s not a lie. Elizabeth is totally fine, just also a few inches from certain death as well. And then, suddenly, she gets an idea. “Oh, but she’s hiding under my bed right now. That’s why I can’t take a picture. ...Maybe she’ll come out when she hears your voice.”

“Hm,” Jumin shrugs. “Put me on speaker.”

Jaehee quickly does so, before pointing her phone towards the cat. Jumin takes a deep breath, and then he says:

“Elizabeth, you shouldn’t stay in dusty areas... _meow._ ”

What the fuck.

Elizabeth’s eyes widen, and it meows back enthusiastically upon hearing Jumin’s voice. It jumps off the windowsill onto the apartment floor, and Jaehee lets out a sigh way too loud before rushing over and slamming the window shut.

“What was that?”

“Ah, must be the wind,” Jaehee blatantly lies. Elizabeth continues meowing. “She must miss you.”

“Mm, of course,” Jumin hums, and there’s something of a smile in his voice. “Don’t worry, my princess, I’ll be back home soon. Let Jaehee take care of your first.”

Jaehee decides to make no comment. “I have to be going now. Please report on time for the next few hours, till 12 midnight, and make sure she takes her afternoon nap in the next hour. Make sure you scent her bed with the organic cherry hydrosol, like I showed you.”

“Understood,” Jaehee says. Jumin hangs up before Jaehee can ask if the hours from 5 to 12 midnight also count as overtime.

Her entire apartment smells of cherry for the next two weeks. At least the overtime pay is pretty nice. Her mother always said that real life throws a bone in your way now and then; but hey, it was nice as a one-off thing.

\---

It is not a one-off thing.

Just three days later, Jumin walks to Jaehee’s cubicle as she’s compiling the a fiscal report. “You did a good job last time,” he compliments, and Jaehee tries to stop her face from lighting up.

“Thank you very much, Mr. Han. I put a lot of effort into that customer--”

“No, I mean with Elizabeth,” he cuts off. Jaehee blinks. “An urgent matter cropped up, and I’ll need to take a flight to Japan this evening. Book a flight for me to Narita Airport and send me the details as soon as possible. Remember, I only fly Korean Air. Driver Kim will send you home with me to drop me off and pick up Elizabeth. I’ve prepared a special meal for her Thursday turkey leg dinner, so you’ll need to heat that up for her. Make sure you debone it. If she can’t eat it easily, mince it, but not so much that it’ll ruin the flavor. I’ll give you more details when we’re in the car.”

Jaehee just kind of stares back, still trying to process the ten different instructions at once. “...Alright, sir, but--”

“I’ll send the overtime pay to your bank immediately after I get back to Korea. I’ll give you this month’s pay early too,” Jumin promises. For some reason, that doesn’t pacify Jaehee as much as it should. “By the way, be careful with that report. Our last accountant got jailed for tax evasion.”

Jaehee only presses her face to the table when Jumin is out of sight.

\---

This time, Elizabeth jumps into the washing machine and Jaehee closes it on her before realizing what’s happened. What follows is a mad rush to pry a soaked kitten out of a death wheel, and then an hour-long towel-dry session because Elizabeth is too spooked the hairdryer.

And, if you know what a persian cat is, you’d know that they have a _shitton_ of fur.

At least she falls asleep quickly. It takes an extra three hours of sunning and whacking to get the fur out of her clothes.

On Monday morning, she doesn’t even bother with the animal cage anymore. Jaehee just grabs Elizabeth and hauls her all the way to the office, because it takes too damn long to force the cat into the transport cage. She doesn’t mind the weird stares as she takes lift up to Jumin’s office. She’s dealt with much worse. Nothing can faze her.

“Mr. Han--” The moment she steps onto the office floor, the kitten leaps out of her hands, whacking Jaehee in the chin in the process. It runs across the floor, before curling up against someone’s leg.

“There she is,” Jumin says. “She’s been doing quite well.”

“Oh, I’m glad your new assistant is fitting in.” That’s a voice Jaehee hasn’t heard before, and she looks up to see a blonde woman in a light dress. Elizabeth is coiled around her legs. There’s another unfamiliar man in the office, but she’s been so preoccupied with the cat she didn’t even notice.

Jumin’s lips twitch, as if he’s going to say _I meant the cat, not her,_ but he refrains. “She is quite capable. That’s why I brought you two over today.”

The other man, someone with light blue hair that is most definitely not real, bend his knees to rub the cat on the head. “You’ve been making her take care of Elizabeth the 3rd for you? Ah, have you gotten bored of the cat already?”

For some reason, Jaehee steps forward to defend her boss. “No. Mr. Han was very busy over the weekend, so I took care of Elizabeth for him. He loves… her… very much.”

“I knew it! I knew he was a cat person,” the woman laughs. She reaches out of grab Jaehee’s hand, and even though Jaehee’s been taught to be open, _sociable,_ the sudden contact makes her freeze up. “I’m glad he does. We got Elizabeth for Jumin as a gift! Don’t you think he’s happier now with her, V?”

“Definitely,” V laughs. _That’s an incredibly stupid name,_ is Jaehee would say, if she had been brought up a little less well. Instead, she gets dragged by the blonde woman to the middle of the room.

“You’re Jaehee Kang, right? It’s nice to meet you. You can call me Rika,” she introduces, and her sunniness is such a huge contrast with her first week in the office that it dazzles Jaehee. She simply stares at Rika, before slowly nodding, not even remembering to smile.

Jumin steps in to her unintentional rescue, funnily enough. “Jaehee, this is Rika and V. They’re good friends of mine. They’ve come to discuss about the next major RFA event.”

“RFA?” Jaehee looks at Rika for an answer.

“It’s Rika Fundraising Association! Named afters yours truly,” Rika explains, not too helpfully. “One and a half years ago, we held a large party and raised money for good causes. We’ve been busy since then, planning for the next one. It’s going to be bigger and better than our first!”

Jaehee also stops herself from saying _wow, I can’t believe Mr. Han would actually participate in something charitable like this._ She doesn’t know why she feels so vehement towards her new boss already. It’s just the cat. Probably. “Guests at the party would donate to us. So this year, it’d be great if we could have even more guests. Maybe we’ll hold the party in a more prestigious location too. One of Jumin’s many mansions, perhaps,” V suggests. Jumin just sighs in response. Elizabeth meows. “See, Elizabeth approves. She’s the only girl you’d ever let into your house, so she knows exactly how nice the place must be.”

“If I held a party at my house, my father would kill me. Even for the RFA,” Jumin sighs.

“Really? Maybe I can discuss with him,” Rika suggests. A vein probably just popped in Jumin’s head. And suddenly, Rika includes Jaehee back into the conversation, turning right back to her-- “Jaehee, what do you think? Won’t a mansion party attract a lot of guests?”

Oh, shit, they’re asking for her opinion.

Jaehee tries to act natural, and in the process, she only ends up sounding more robotic than ever. “I feel… while a mansion party would be grand, if the goal of the organization is to raise funds, it wouldn’t work. A mansion party would need excessive food, excessive activities, drinks, and guests… a party centered around _excess_ would not make people feel generous.”

All those years of reading bad Victorian literature have paid off, apparently. Rika tilts her head, before nodding along. “That’s right. Mm, even if it’s fancy, a mansion party would make it all about ‘rich people celebrating their richness’, and not ‘every guest of every kind celebrating their life’. And that’s what the party should be about. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, Jaehee! You hired a great assistant, Jumin.”

“Right,” Jumin mutters. He mouths _thank you_ to Jaehee, but she doesn’t catch it.

“She definitely has a point,” V hums. “Then, I suggest my previous idea on Jeju Island--”

Rika laughs. “That’s even worse, V! Let’s just hold in it the same place as our last one. My apartment.” Then, she looks back at Jaehee, smiling from ear to ear.

(Her eyes are the sun.)

“Jaehee, since you’ll be working closely with Jumin, how about joining the RFA?”

Elizabeth crawls out from under Rika’s dress, and starts pawing at Jaehee’s foot. “Even Elizabeth wants you to join,” V points out, and Jaehee looks down at the cat. It’s brought her nothing but pain for the past few days, and honestly, she doesn’t want anything to do with whatever it would want for her-- but Rika, who is _still holding onto her hand,_ is smiling too expectantly for Jaehee to say no.

“I would love to,” Jaehee says.

“Wonderful!” Rika finally lets go, and she runs to Jumin, before grabbing his hand too. Seeing Rika drag Jumin along makes Jaehee think that perhaps he’s not completely stoic and cold-blooded. “My cousin will be released from school earlier this Wednesday, so how about we get together and take an RFA group picture?”

Jaehee opens up her schedule. “Ah, I’m sorry. Mr. Han has a meeting on that day--”

“Wednesday is fine,” Jumin cuts off. “Jaehee, reschedule the meeting.”

Rika shakes her head. “It’s alright, you don’t need to reschedule just for me. We can take a picture a few weeks later! Though, it’d be hard to find another day when we’d all be free, so…”

“It’s fine. Wednesday it is,” Jumin repeats. His mind is made up, and so is another job for Jaehee to attend to.

V rubs the back of his head. “Don’t you think you pamper Rika even more than I do, Jumin?”

“I don’t pamper anyone,” Jumin outright lies, while he picks up Elizabeth and rubs her gently on the head. “Wednesday is just the most efficient option.”

“I’m glad you’d free up your schedule just for us. I’m touched,” Rika says anyway, even when Jumin refuses to make eye contact with her, too focused on his purring cat. “Jaehee, I’ll introduce you to everyone on Wednesday. I’m sure you’ll get along with all of them!”

“Thank you,” Jaehee says, adding a quick bow. “I’m looking forward to working with you as well, Ms Rika.”

Rika shakes her head. “Rika. Just Rika is fine.”

(And for the entire day, the room is bright, as if her presence can summon the sun.)

\---

“I’m sorry. Rika couldn’t make it. She has to deal with something at home,” V apologizes. “Good news, though. Seven’s finally finished the RFA messenger app, so at least there’s that.”

Jaehee doesn’t know if she’s disappointed, so she only nods. “It’s fine.”

“Wow, she’s just as stiff as you described to be,” Seven says, walking out from behind V. Jaehee doesn’t know what’s worse-- that she’s already being insulted, or that she’s already left that impression on V.

“Don’t be rude,” V retorts. Of course, it’s V defending her, not Jumin, the man who roped her into this in the first place. “Where’s Zen and Yoosung?”

“Coming, coming,” Seven shrugs. He then walks up to Jaehee, before raising his arm up. “Sup, name’s Seven.”

Jaehee blinks. “It’s good to meet you. I’m Jaehee.”

“It’s is a hi-five, get it?” Seven shakes his arm a little. “Good to meet you too! C’mon!”

Jaehee just stares.

“Not everyone has your terrible sense of humor, Seven,” Jumin chips in. Seven just laughs. He lowers his arm, before sneaking around Jaehee, staring at her back. “...What are you doing?”

“I was looking for a wind-up key. Did you hire a female robot, Jumin? And is she programmed to do things over than assistant work?” Seven’s obviously trying to get a rise out of Jaehee, but she keeps her face unchanged. “Can I wind her up like a doll?”

Jumin actually grabs Jaehee’s shoulders and turns her around to face Seven. Oh, god. “Take a closer look. Hiring a female robot would be cheaper. As you can see, this woman is clearly human.”

Seven just laughs even louder. “You have no idea how expensive robots can be, Jumin! Though, that does give me an idea…”

Yoosung arrives next, and it’s not hard to see that he’s related to Rika. He’s bubbly, if just a bit awkward and nerdy. “It’s great to meet you, Jaehee!” He’s also the first person who is normal enough to offer Rika a polite handshake as a greeting. That’s always a plus. “I’m glad you joined the RFA! My name is Yoosung. I’m 17 years old! My dream school is SKY University! What school did you go to?”

“Ah? I went to--”

“You’re bombarding her with too much at once, Yoosung.” A man with white hair-- _definitely a wig--_ steps in, pulling Yoosung aside. “That’s no way to treat a woman. Here’s how you do it-- watch and learn.”

The man gently takes Jaehee’s hand, before bowing down in front of her. “My name is Zen. I’m an up-and-coming actor, still working hard on my next musical.” He somehow manages to slip a name card from his sleeve and into Jaehee’s hand. “It’s an honor to meet you, my lady.”

“Bleck,” Yoosung and Seven contribute in unison. Zen gets up, fixes his tie, and then reveals an entire tied stack of name cards stuffed up his sleeve before tossing the stack at the two of them.

Seven dodges, but not before pushing Yoosung in the way. “Ohhh! Bullseye!”

“OW!” Yoosung rubs his forehead, falling on the ground. “You’re a bully! I’ll tell Rika to kick you out!”

“Stop acting like children,” Jumin commands, and as usual, none of them listen. V just helps Yoosung up from the floor, before hurrying everyone into their places so they can take the photo they came for in the first place.

“Stay still. I’m setting the camera for a 10-second timer,” V says, positioning the camera stand. “Seven, fix your tie.”

Jaehee stands stiffly next to Yoosung, fixing the ruffles at her neck. Jumin and Zen stand on the bench behind Seven, Yoosung and Jaehee, and they’re almost tall enough to hit the ceiling if they jumped while on the chair. V fixes the camera’s position, before calmly walking between Jumin and Zen.

“Ah, say cheese,” V remembers.

“Cheeeeese,” Yoosung drags out, and the camera snaps.

Jaehee and Jumin and the only ones who don’t smile. Maybe it’s a C&R International thing.

\---

“Hey, Jaehee, wanna go out?”

Jaehee almost chokes when Zen says that. “I mean, it’d be nice if all of us went out for lunch together, or something. It’s good for the RFA to know each other better.” He definitely chose that wording on purpose. “What do you think, Jaehee? Over the weekend, of course, because I’m sure Jumin’s planning to work you to the bone during work hours.”

“I’m free this weekend!” Yoosung jumps into the conversation. Even though they technically arranged this Thursday meeting for discussing party guests, Rika got caught up in other matters, and V had to leave to help her. Jumin himself is caught up with preparing Elizabeth’s ‘Thursday special meal’ again, while Seven is… _somewhere._

“This weekend…” Jaehee closes her eyes, remembering what normally happens when Jumin gets busy over the weekend. “I’ll free up my schedule. However, Mr. Han might dump his cat on me--”

 _”Eerk?!”_ The noise that just came from Zen’s mouth was not human. “That’s… that’s beyond cruel. I’m so sorry for you, Jaehee.”

Yoosung shrugs. “Zen hates cats. He’s allergic. Especially Jumin’s cat, because after Rika got it for Jumin, he brought it around _everywhere_ for a while! And once, it jumped onto Zen’s--”

“God, _stop,_ ” Zen begs. “Some memories are never meant to be brought up.”

Yoosung opens his phone. “Let’s ask Jumin to let Jaehee go out over the weekend!”

“I can’t believe we actually have to ask him for that. This is slave work,” Zen mutters. “Seriously, I can’t imagine working for that guy. I couldn’t last a day, much less a month. Is that why you act so stiff, Jaehee?”

Jaehee shakes her head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I heard that some people lock up their emotions as a coping mechanism,” Zen rambles on. “Hey, if you quit working for Jumin, that’s not a problem~! You can still be part of the RFA. And you have great organization skills and know how to help run a business, so you can come work for the theatre company I’m partnered with. We’d love someone with logistical skills.”

“Ahahah, but Zen, does a theatre company pay as much as an international corporation?” Yoosung’s words make Zen turn away in embarrassment.

“It’s not about the money! You’re too young to be thinking like that, Yoosung. It’s about following your dreams!”

“Ah-- thank you,” Jaehee interrupts. “But I’m not interested in finding other jobs right now.”

Yoosung shows Jaehee his phone screen. “There, Jumin’s agreed to it!” Neither of the two men have realized that Jaehee herself hasn’t.

“It’s a date, then!” Zen takes out his phone too. “Where would you like to go, Jaehee? It’ll be your day! We can go shopping in Myeongdong, or Times Square, or--”

Yoosung shakes his head. “That’s for spending money, not getting to know people! Let’s go to a nature park.”

Zen sticks his tongue out. “Yoosung… it’s the middle of summer. We’ll melt.”

“Well, not everything is about beauty products and nice clothes, either. You shouldn’t be so vain, I don’t think Jaehee would like that,” Yoosung retorts.

“Whatever, let’s let her decide,” Zen says, and the both of them look at Jaehee.

Silence.

“...Let’s go to a coffee shop,” Jaehee finally says.

\---

“I hope you like this place,” Zen says, opening the door for Jaehee. “Flitz coffee company! It’s a good thing you can wake up early, because once lunch hour hits, this entire place is packed. All two stories of this building. And it’ll good for you too, Yoosung, because it’s a nice place to study.”

“Hey, I’m here to socialize today,” Yoosung mutters. The big clump of notes under his right arm betray his true intentions. Jaehee takes a tentative step, before breathing in the aroma of coffee beans, freshly unpacked for the morning customers.

She smiles. “You have good taste.”

“Oh?! A compliment?!” Zen cheers to himself. “See, Yoosung, learn from the master. Just bring a girl to a good coffee shop, and her heart is yours.”

“This wasn’t even your idea, it was Jaehee’s…” Yoosung sighs, sitting down on a table and dropping his stack of notes on the top. They make an impressive _clunk_.

“Still, I’m going to savor the moment. It might’ve been the first time she’s praised someone in ten years,” Zen jokes. Jaehee’s smile drops. “Ahhh, sorry, sorry-- just tell me what you’d like to get, alright? All on me.”

Yoosung opens the menu and pales. “This… this is a little expensive for just coffee and pastries.”

“Such is the price of trendy cafes,” Zen shrugs. “Order whatever you’d like! Rika, V and Jumin are going around trying to get more guests for the party, so we’ll meet them later in the evening for dinner. In the meantime, there’s a lot of exploring to do and time to kill, so make sure you eat enough for brunch.”

Jaehee looks at the menu, and tries not to make her eyes sparkle too obviously. “I’ll ask the barista for more information, first.”

“Alright, let’s go,” Zen offers, getting up and extending his hand to Jaehee. She gets up without taking it. “Ah, truly an ice queen.”

Once they get to the barista, Jaehee opens up the menu. “Good morning. I’m interested in your hand drip coffees. Though, do you have any recommendations for the weather?”

“I’m glad you asked,” the barista greets. “For that, it depends on what you mean. Though, I’d recommend the fava beans for today. The strong flavor will definitely wake you up in the morning.”

“That would be wonderful-- but with the heat, I’ve been hoping for an iced coffee instead, and icing a drip brew may destroy the taste,” Jaehee continues. “Do you have a selection of beans that are in season? Maybe I’ll have an iced latte, but at the same time, a cappuccino sounds good…”

“How about this special blend we offer? If you have a sweet tooth, the mocha would also go well this these beans--”

“I don’t like mocha too much myself. Though, I haven’t tried it in a long time. Maybe I’ll order a few drinks over some time. An expresso to start off, then. Arabica coffee, right?”

“Of course! The best kind. Would you like only one blend of fava beans or with an addition of--?”

At some point, everything started flying over Zen’s head, along with the money flying out of his pockets to pay for whatever crazy hipster drink Jaehee just bought. “You know a lot about coffee,” Zen points out.

“I’ve always liked coffee,” Jaehee answers simply.

The barista goes off to prepare the drinks, while Zen’s eyes suddenly light up. “I think you left a good impression on the barista here. How about inviting this coffee company over to the party?”

“Oh…” Jaehee looks away. “That’s possible?”

“Any guest is welcome, especially from an up-and-coming organization like this,” Zen suggests. “It’s settled! Let’s tell them to email Rika. Then, we’ll be helping out while getting to know each other at the same time.”

Jaehee nods, before calling the barista over when they’re done with the order. She puts on a warm smile, stirring her coffee before inviting the barista to tell her manager that there’s going to be a big party, a few months down the road, and someone who knows their way around a good coffee is definitely welcome…

“That sounds wonderful. I’ll tell my boss to email your leader Rika, then.” Jaehee walks away with a strangely accomplished look on her face, as if this was the only thing worth doing in the past one month. (It was.) Zen’s waiting for her by the cashier, and gives her a wave.

“So, you’re not actually awkward or anything. Are you just shy around us, then?” Zen flips his hair. Jaehee has to dodge to prevent it from getting into her coffee. “Or were my dazzling looks enough to stun you into silence?”

“Nothing like that,” Jaehee scoffs, and Zen laughs to himself. “...I’m not quite sure how to act in front of Mr. Han. You all act so casually, which is alright since you’re friends with him, but I’m his employee. It’s different for me.”

Zen makes a _tsk_ sound as they walk back to their table. “That’s nothing to worry about. Mr. Trust Fund Kid is strict when it comes to work, but not personality. You can complain all you want or air all your grievances about him right in his face, and he won’t do a thing. As long as you do your job and don’t go too far with it, he’s totally fine with however you act. I think he only fired his last assistant because he screwed up some really important paperwork…”

“Yes, I heard,” Jaehee says. “Is that really true? It sounds…”

“If he keeps _me_ around despite all the crap I’ve said about him, then you’ll be fine,” Zen deadpans, before covering his mouth. “Oh, I shouldn’t swear. I’m gonna become a famous movie star soon, after all~”

When they get back to their table, they move to sit down, before realizing-- “Wait, Yoosung, when the hell did you get three slices of cake?”

Yoosung, who is sheepishly eating one of those slices, just looks down at his chemistry notes and sighs. “...There were two girls who came in, and they realized they didn’t have money to buy a cake. So I offered to cover the cost they couldn’t afford, and after that, they insisted on splitting the cake in half and leaving one half to me.”

“Wow! What a gentleman,” Zen says. “The two girls… oh! The cute ones with red dresses that left the shop while we were waiting for our order! Did you get their numbers?!”

Yoosung blinks. “Oh, no.”

Zen deflates. “S-seriously? That was the best opportunity you could’ve had, and yet…”

“They wanted to give me their numbers so they could repay me, but I told them that half the cake was fine in itself,” Yoosung continues.

Zen just slams the table passionately. The plates shake. Jaehee jumps back. “Yoosung… they’re not just offering their number to repay you. If they wanted to just repay you, they would’ve asked for _your_ number.”

Yoosung tilts his head. “What do you mean, Zen?”

“Obviously, what do _you_ think when someone offers you their number?! They were interested in you, Yoosung!” Zen lets out a dramatic sigh, before falling onto the seat next to him, dejectedly poking at a slice of cake with his fork. “Capturing the hearts of two girls and breaking them, before the lunch bell hits… you’re the real womanizer here…”

When the implication hits him, Yoosung’s entire face turns red. “T-that can’t be it! I just helped them buy a cake, that’s all. You’re just too narcissistic, Zen, you’d think anyone was interested in you…”

“And how often do you hear of people randomly offering acts of kindness to others?” Zen violently jabs the cake. Yoosung winces. “Yoosung, you set yourself up perfectly. The studious nerd--”

“--I’m not a nerd--”

“--diligently reading his notes in a quaint, peaceful coffeeshop. All of the sudden, two beautiful young girls walk in, lost in their own innocence and covered in the scent of flowers. They run into trouble, and the nerd-boy offers up his wallet, asking nothing in return. Touched by his generosity, the girls leave him their numbers, and when the boy returns to school, he realizes they’re all in the same class! And then, begins the battle of love, as both girls fight to win the gentle boy’s affections--!!”

Yoosung stares. “I don’t think that’s how real life works, Zen.”

“Whatever. Let’s ask Jaehee, since she’s the woman here,” Zen says. Jaehee awkwardly seats herself, looking at the last fat slice of cake. “If a dashing young man-- or, in Yoosung’s case, selectively attractive boy--”

“-- _excuse me?_ \--”

“--offered you a helping hand when you were in trouble, would you feel instantly attracted to them? Won’t you feel the world becomes warmer with their help?”

“No,” Jaehee answers without hesitation. Zen almost falls out his chair. “It’s nice in romance novels. But if people fell head-over-heels for each other that easily, South Korea wouldn’t have a falling birth rate.”

Yoosung gives Zen a proud smirk, while Zen just stuffs the cake into his mouth. His expression lightens up instantly. “Oh-- it’s good,” Zen hums.

Jaehee finally relaxes into her seat, taking her time to taste the coffee with the cake. They definitely blend well, and for the first time in the entire _month,_ she can roll her shoulders back and live a little. She didn’t even realize she was this tense.

Well, she’ll probably have to get used to it.

Zen leans over. “Speaking of low birth rate, I heard there’s actually a new trend going around. _Namnam Buknyeo_ , where a North Korean defector would be matchmade with a South Korean man. Apparently, there’s an old belief that North Korean women are exceptionally beautiful and South Korean men exceptionally handsome-- as proven by yours truly~ so there’s companies that matchmake these people together to help defectors adjust to South Korea.”

Yoosung’s eyes widen. “Wait, people can actually defect from North Korea? Wow…”

“It sounds… a bit idealistic,” Jaehee mutters. “How could people from just drastically different backgrounds get along?”

“Ah, you say that, but actually, one company has a one-third success rate for North Korean women! That’s not bad at all,” Zen continues. “It proves that even the most different of people can fall in love. No matter what circumstances you were born in, if your heart is pure, love will blossom. I think my theatre company wants to make a play on this soon, so I’m doing a lot of research.”

Then, Zen sinks onto the table. “God, even North Korean women have better luck with love than me… or all of us, in fact.”

“Cheer up, Zen,” Yoosung says. He tentatively reaches out and pets Zen on the head. Zen gives him a _what the fuck_ look before Yoosung retracts his hand. “Oh, but we don’t know about Jaehee. Jaehee, do you have anyone you like?”

“No.”

“Figures,” Zen sighs.

Jaehee stares at her coffee for a moment. “...How about we invite one of those matchmaking companies to the party?”

Yoosung looks up. “Eh?”

“If they are a matchmaking company that centers around the idea of unification and helping the disadvantaged, like defectors… then I think they would fit with the theme of the party,” Jaehee hums.

“Oh, that’s a good idea! I’ll go ask some of them when our company goes to ask their bosses for the most romantic couple stories they’ve had,” Zen perks up. “You’re not bad at this, Jaehee. In return, I’ll ask the director to save a seat for you when our musical goes live for show.”

Yoosung tilts his head. “I don’t think Jaehee would be interested--”

“No, that does sound fun,” Jaehee says. Zen’s eyes widen. “I haven’t had time recently, but I did like watching musicals like _Sicked_ and _Lying King_ in the past.”

“Those are the classics. Hey, I acted as one of the love interests in _Tei's Tea Leaf_ one year back,” Zen mentions. “I think I still have a DVD lying around. Do you want it? I was pretty good in that one~”

\---

By the time they get over their inertia and leave the coffee shop to meet the rest of the RFA, it’s almost time to go for dinner. It’s truly a mystery on _how_ you can waste so many hours a day talking about absolutely nothing important at all, especially for someone who values efficiency like Jaehee does, but Zen has a special talent in making useless bullshit sound interesting. Seven has only confirmed he can’t make it-- too swamped with college to do anything else, with finals coming up, and he _needs_ that degree.

“You’re a really interesting person, Jaehee! I would’ve never guessed that you practiced judo on weekends,” Yoosung continues to chat.

“It does get a bit difficult, since most people into judo tend to be over 60kg or 70kg, at the very least. But even if I can’t join competitions, exercise is important for health,” Jaehee replies. “Of course, I’ve been too busy the last few weekends. I do hope I can go to the gym tomorrow.”

Because, no matter how much she hates Elizabeth the 3rd, she is not going to suplex a cat.

As they walk out of the train stations to the bigger streets, the Saturday crowd really starts to hit. If it’s Saturday _today,_ that means they can spend the rest of Sunday hungover. And that’s what most businessmen and women do-- drink with their bosses, bitch about their lives till they get blackout drunk and somehow it’s supposed to serve as a bonding session.

Maybe most bosses aren’t as cold as Jumin Han. Mr. Chairman, for example, Jumin’s father, has no problem with passing out on the street surrounded by women. Jaehee herself has no interest in it, and thankfully, Jumin shares her views.

“They’re in the chatroom,” Zen hums, tapping away at the screen. “Give me a moment.”

ZEN: Where are you guys…  
RIKA: Sorry sorry!!! ∑(ﾟﾛﾟ〃) I’m otw to meet you guys  
V: We got… sidetracked.  
ZEN: lololol  
ZEN: It’s alright.  
ZEN: What did you get sidetracked by?  
RIKA: We found a really pretty necklace shop run by one person…  
RIKA: It was spectacular!! There were necklaces EVERYWHERE on the walls!!!  
RIKA: I wanted one  
RIKA: but  
ZEN: But?  
RIKA: It cost 1000000 won.  
ZEN: **1000000...**  
JUMIN: In other words, her boyfriend is too poor to afford it.  
ZEN:  No one can afford that much except you, Mr. Trust Fund Kid.  
JUMIN: That only proves my point.  
YOOSUNG: I’m sure V would’ve gotten it for you if he could, Rika!  
V: I could, actually, but…  
V: She said that even if it was gorgeous, it wasn’t good to spend so much on frivolous things.  
RIKA: We could use that money for much more meaningful things!  
ZEN: See, that’s how you’re supposed to be with money, Jumin.  
YOOSUNG: Wow…  
YOOSUNG: You’re so cool, Rika!  
RIKA: It’s nothing (°◡°♡).:｡  
RIKA: V did insist to buy one though  
RIKA:   
RIKA: Messenger makes my image shrink!!  
ZEN: Seven, go fix it.  
YOOSUNG: Hey, how about inviting the shop owner to the party?  
YOOSUNG: Since they must be super-talented!  
RIKA: !!!  
RIKA: That’s a good idea!  
RIKA: I’m going back now!  
V: Wait. Let’s eat dinner first.  
RIKA: I’ll forget otherwise!! V let’s go let’s go  
V: You don’t need to text, I’m right next to you.

Zen puts down the phone. “Does that mean we’ll have to eat dinner alone with Jumin?”

“It can’t be too hard,” Yoosung tries to say.

“Hey, Jaehee, you’re his assistant,” Zen says. “What’s he like while eating?”

“He…” Jaehee tries to actually remember the last time she saw Jumin eating. His schedule is just as packed and hers, which means eating can be… a luxury. “He doesn’t seem to like eating ‘commoner food’.”

Yoosung tilts his head. “Commoner food?”

“What he refers hamburgers and the like by.”

“Does he eat caviar all day?” Zen laughs to himself, walking ahead of the two as he gestures wildly. He turns around to face them, before putting on an exaggerated expression and walking backwards. “ _I, Jumin Han, will only allow my steamed exotic Arabian fish to be seasoned with three dashes of Peruvian lime. Not one, not two, and god forbid four, just three dashes of two drops each. And prepare another serving for my cat too, so the lords of hell can dine together--_ ”

Yoosung pales. “Um, Zen--”

“-- _and prepare me wine from grapes crushed by the hands of fair milkmaids from Germany, fermented for years in the oven of a forest witch--_ ”

Jaehee coughs loudly. “Zen.”

“-- _and you have to serve it to me while bowing and calling me by my full title, the Lord of the Land, Sea, Sky, and all the Mortal World of which the sun kisses--_ ”

Jaehee finally grabs Zen’s shoulders and shake him. “ **Zen, he’s right behind you.** ”

Zen turns around. Jumin looks at him in the eye. After a moment of tense silence, Jumin clears his throat. “...Jaehee, there you are. Come, we’re going to go shopping.”

Grateful for the distraction, but also confused about what Jumin is saying, Zen steps aside and lets Jumin walk to Jaehee. “Let’s go.”

“Wait! Ah, Jumin-- I thought we booked a restaurant to eat together?” Yoosung gets a cursory glance from Jumin, who decides that he should explain.

“Yes, Mr. Han,” Jaehee interrupts, mustering the courage to speak up. In the distance, Zen flashes her two thumbs-up. She glares at him. “It’s a reservation that can’t be cancelled. It would be a waste to have to pay for the table without going--”

“Who says it can’t be cancelled? Besides, I’m not cancelling it. I’m extending to later,” Jumin explains. “Rika and V have to go back to the necklace shop, so they’ll take a while to come back. So I delayed it by an hour. Now, there’s a three-storey pet accessory shop nearby, and I need a pair of extra hands to carry everything.”

Yoosung raises an eyebrow. “Carry everything…?”

“I’ve scouted the place already. Their necklaces are top-quality. Elizabeth 3rd would enjoy them, and I need enough to make sure she doesn’t get bored.” Jumin beckons Jaehee to follow him. Not really unlike a dog, actually. “I’ve selected about a hundred or so I’m interested in buying, but I haven’t climbed onto the second floor yet.”

Zen spits. “ **A hundred?!** ”

“In the meantime, as I take accessories, I want you to compute how much the total bill will be. I’ll pay you for the work,” Jumin ends off with. And then he turns around, walking towards the pet shop, as if already expecting Jaehee to automatically follow him.

“Hey, hey--” But Zen cuts in again. “This is supposed to be her day off. How about you--”

“She will be given the overtime pay she is due. This has nothing to do with you,” Jumin retorts. “So, Jaehee?”

“I’ll go,” Jaehee sighs. Zen gives the both of them an incredulous look, but lets the both of them go anyway.

The bill totals up to a little over 1000000 won.

\---

On another weekend, while Elizabeth is crawling all over her couch, her and and even pawing at her face as she tries to sleep, Jaehee decides that sleep is overrated and opens up her phone.

ZEN: Jaehee, you’re still awake?  
JAEHEE: Yes… I’m normally awake at this time.  
JAEHEE: There is no such thing as a restful night when I have this cat around.  
SEVEN: **Kitty!**  
SEVEN: It’s okay, you can drop it off at my place!  
JAEHEE: Can I?  
ZEN: Oh.  
ZEN:  Oh.  
ZEN: That’s a bad idea, Jaehee. Even though I hate cats…  
ZEN: **The things Seven puts them through…**  
JAEHEE: I won’t, then.  
JAEHEE: It is not worth getting sacked over some peace.  
SEVEN: Aren’t you being a bit too quick to judge?!  
SEVEN: Zen hasn’t even told you what I do!  
SEVEN: And it’s nothing bad! I just  
SEVEN: hug them a lot  
SEVEN: throw them into the air and catch them  
SEVEN: run with them around the house  
JAEHEE: That’s abuse.  
ZEN: Yeah.  
SEVEN: You’re all teaming up against me!  
SEVEN:  I’m hurt!  
JAEHEE: Anyway, I came here to ask a question.  
JAEHEE: Zen.  
ZEN: Yes?  
JAEHEE: The musical you acted in before.  
JAEHEE: Tei’s Tea Leaf.  
JAEHEE: Can I have the DVD the next time we meet?  
ZEN: Oh!  
ZEN: Of course~ ✧✧✧  
JAEHEE: I would hope that if it’s good, then I’d have something to do while unable to leave the house with this cat I have.  
JAEHEE: And if it isn’t, at least it would send me to sleep.  
SEVEN: lololol  
SEVEN: don’t expect too much from it  
ZEN: Hey…  
ZEN: It was my first big break, alright?  
ZEN: It’s not my best performance, I’ll admit, but I’m practicing every day to hone my skills.  
JAEHEE: I can see your dedication.  
JAEHEE: Even if I haven’t had time to watch your plays…  
JAEHEE: It must be difficult to keep up training every single day for the past month.  
ZEN: Well, it’s the first big musical this company will have in a while, so everyone’s putting their all into it.  
ZEN: I’d love to take a break, but alas, the rest of the cast is dependent on me.  
ZEN: I’m the male lead, after all.  
ZEN: Aaah, why is life so hard?  
ZEN: Is it because I'm so beautiful?  
SEVEN: I'm removing that font.  
ZEN: Hey, it’s my favorite!  
ZEN: Also.  
ZEN: Jaehee, what are you up to now?

Jaehee casually plucks Elizabeth off her phone, and out of the room.

JAEHEE: Trying to get a cat off my phone.  
ZEN: Shivers.  
ZEN: Do you want me to come over right now?  
JAEHEE: Now? ;;;;  
ZEN: I could!  
ZEN: I mean…  
ZEN: How could I leave a lady alone when she’s in need of company~?  
SEVEN: gross lol  
ZEN: Anyway I meant that I can come drop the DVD off right now.  
ZEN: I’m meaning to leave my house anyway.  
JAEHEE: This late at night?  
ZEN: It’s only midnight lol  
JAEHEE: And I just talked about how hard you were working on the play…  
ZEN: I can make it to your house in five minutes, I guarantee it.  
JAEHEE: Five minutes?  
ZEN: Just wait.

She should’ve probably asked him _how_ he could’ve possibly driven all the way here in five minutes, but there wasn’t any time. He left the chatroom, and Jaehee left quickly too in order to avoid Seven’s teasing. _Looks like Zen’s interested-- but he’s a playboy, so watch out!_

“What a ridiculous notion,” Jaehee sighs, opening the front door to her apartment. She’s moved to the first floor, if only to avoid the cat leaping out the window again, and she waits for the five-minute mark.

Zen actually makes it in eight minutes, sauntering up the front gate with windswept hair and a dazed look in his eyes. “Sorry,” he pants. “Had to avoid traffic.”

“I doubt you ran all the here,” Jaehee points out. And cycling would be… unrealistic. “Did you use a motorbike?”

“Oh, you’re sharp,” Zen laughs.

“You should be more careful on it, then. Don’t rush around the city like that,” Jaehee scolds, even though Zen technically drove here for her. But she didn’t agree to it, much less encourage reckless behavior. “South Korea has some of the most dangerous roads in the developed world. You could really get in trouble.”

Zen, for a moment, seems to take her seriously. Though, it’s not enough to wipe the grin off his face. “You really have encyclopedic knowledge on a lot of things, Jaehee. --Here.” He hands the DVD over. “I’ll get going now!”

“Wait, where are you going? Don’t you have practice tomorrow?” Jaehee manages to stop Zen in his tracks for a moment. “You shouldn’t stay out too late. You need sleep.”

“Really? You’re going to be like that? Jeez, when did you become my…” Zen seems to mouth _mother,_ but he doesn’t say it out loud, just smiles back at Jaehee. “But, you’ve convinced me. I’ll go home instead, and catch up on my much needed beauty sleep.”

“That’s good,” Jaehee says. “Tomorrow, I’ll tell you what I think of your musical.”

“I’m sure you’ll have nothing but praises for it~ oh, but I’ve given you one thing,” Zen says, and adds in a wink. “So, what else do you have to give me in return?”

Jaehee blinks. “...What?”

“Actually, I got the perfect idea,” Zen interrupts. “Next week, how about you teach me the basics of judo? I’ve got to know for the musical, after all, and I don’t like the director’s choreographed sequence. A real professional with a black belt is probably much better than some middle-aged overweight man with bad skin, right?” And he throws in another wink, before turning around on his heels and walking back to his motorcycle.

She watches the musical. She doesn’t stop watching the musical. She comes home from work, every day, and in the background as she cleans her room and prepares dinner, she plays it over again.

\---

The gym is, thankfully, quite devoid of people on Wednesday.

With Jumin taking a surprise day off for other RFA matters, Jaehee gets an impromptu break too. Which is absolutely _perfect,_ apparently, because practice is called off and Zen’s rushing over to meet her.

ZEN: Go to this gym!  
ZEN: It’s my favorite. Gotta get this body somehow.  
ZEN: Beauty comes with hard work.

When he arrives, he’s already in a skintight workout outfit with rolled-up pants. In comparison, Jaehee’s garb is much more baggy, a black shirt two sizes too big along with long pants. “I hope you don’t expect me to toss you,” Jaehee greets Zen with, and Zen just laughs in response.

“Could you?”

“...I could, but you would be too heavy compared to me. I fear I may not drop you… in a good way.”

“So that’s the issue,” Zen hums. Then, he puts his legs shoulder width apart, before bending his knees slightly and standing firm on the ground. “But I’m sure it can’t be that much of a problem.”

“...No,” Jaehee immediately says. “I’m serious. I will not throw you until you know the basics, at least.”

“Alright, alright. You must really care about my safety,” Zen tries to joke, but Jaehee just stares straight at him.

“It would not look good on my record if I broke your neck.”

“Oh…” Zen clears his throat.

Starting off, Jaehee walks a circle around Zen. “It looks like you already know how to root yourself to the ground,” she points out. “From acting?”

“Of course. Lowering your centre of gravity and steadying yourself is essential on stage,” Zen explains.

Jaehee nods along. “Judo is all about balance. By scientific principle, an unbalanced object is always more likely to fall over than a balanced one, even if the unbalanced one is much bigger. A small person can theoretically be swept off their feet more easily than a larger one, but it all goes down to technique. That’s why someone like me can throw someone like you, even if you might be over twenty kilograms heavier. If your stance is good, I can jab you from anywhere, and you will not lose your footing.” To illustrate this, Jaehee gives Zen a throw jab right in the back. Zen makes an _oofmph_ sound. She’s stronger than she looks. “If you cannot fall over, you can never lose. Of course, without trying to throw your opponent, you can never win either.”

Zen continues standing firm. “So, basically-- to win in judo, you throw your opponent, right?”

“To put it simply, yes. But judo is not just about throwing people.” Jaehee stands in front of Zen, and jabs him in the side. It’s enough to shock him off his feet for a moment, and he stumbles back. “In fact, throwing comes in three steps. Unbalancing your opponent is the first one, which is what I just did. Next step is to get into position to throw you--”

She steps forward, and Zen stands still so she can put one arm on his knee and another stretched out to grab his shoulder. “Like this. The third move is to actually throw you, which I am not going to demonstrate.”

“Well, I am going to throw someone on stage. So it’d be good if I experience how it’s like to be thrown,” Zen tries to reason.

Jaehee just sighs. “Well, I’m not sure how your ‘stage throws’ will play out. But there _are_ safe ways to throw someone. If not, I don’t think anyone would walk away from a judo competition if their heads are just smashed on the floor. There’s a saying that goes: the most dangerous belts in judo are the black belts and white belts. Because black belts know how to destroy you, but white belts don’t know they’re destroying you.”

Zen blinks. “Judo is a lot more intense than I thought.”

“I’m not sure what you thought of it, but alright,” Jaehee says. She stares at the floor, and then points towards a few mats in the corner. “Get those and lay them out. I’ll teach you how to fall well, and how to throw. The most basic ones, of course.”

“Perfect! I knew you’d come through for me.” Zen lays out the mats, and Jaehee cracks her fingers.

It’s going to be hell on her back, throwing Zen, but she can definitely manage it. “With me, you can relax a bit, since I’m going to make a point of throwing you flat on your back to the mat. But, no matter what, always focus on lifting your head and trying to fall on your back or your side. You _don’t_ want your head to take the brunt of the impact.”

Zen nods along, surprisingly attentive. Jaehee steps forward, grabbing one arm and wrapping her other hand around his side to grab his hip from behind. “Remember, judo is a series of steps. Step one, I unbalance you by yanking your arm.” She pulls Zen closer, making him stumble. “Step two, I get into position, immediately taking a step forward to put my leg right next to your body.”

Once everything is set, she’s got Zen pinned right behind her, and she’s ready to toss his over her shoulder like a rag doll. “Step three, I quickly twist my body, sweeping you off your feet and throwing you-- right here.” After she describes the motion, she immediately moves to do it. Zen gets yanked and tossed with a yelp onto the mattress, landing flat on his back.

“Ow-- shit,” Zen groans. “I snapped something.”

Immediately, Jaehee’s eyes widen, and she gets on her knees closer to Zen. “What? Where? Where does it hurt?”

Zen lets a smirk pass by his face, and then he lets out a laugh. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding. But you can throw with a lot of force… you must be pretty strong. Are you hiding a whole body of muscle under that?”

Jaehee huffs, obviously embarrassed about her misplaced concern. “I do not have a… ‘body of muscle’, or whatever. I simply use physics in judo to my advantage, as all judokas do.”

“Wow, that was a great throw,” Seven remarks. “Not for Zen, though.”

_\--Wait, what._

The both of them stare at Seven for a moment, watching as he saves the video forever in his phone. Zen chokes. “Wait-- Seven, when did you get here? And why did you take a video?!”

“Research,” he shrugs. “Oh, but I just got a good idea!”

“I don’t need to hear it,” Zen immediately rejects, still wondering when the hell Seven popped up and _how long has he been there, god._

Seven pouts. “Come on, now. You want more publicity for your theatre company, right? More people watching the musical?”

Zen narrows his eyes a little. “Of course, but what do you have in mind?”

“Oh, nothing much. Just keep at it, and I’ll get all the material I need,” Seven says with a smile. Jaehee looks worried.

“...Zen, should we leave?”

“No, no, it’s okay,” Zen reassures. “Seven may act odd, but he’s not a bad guy.”

“Yeah! I do my very best. I feel insulted,” Seven pouts.

Jaehee steps back. “Alright, then. I could show you more flashy throws, like the one-arm throw, but it would require some warm-ups first to prevent any muscle tearing.”

“Alright. I know how to do warm-ups,” Zen says. He starts off with the basics, stretching his arms, cracking his back, bending his knees and stretching his calves-- by default, Jaehee does the same as well, which is why she doesn’t start staring till… later.

Jaehee’s been concentrating on teaching Zen this entire time, so excuse _her_ that she doesn’t notice how Zen’s shirt hiked up a little when he was throw. It exposes half of his chest, and Zen is _much_ more than just a pretty face, it seems. Years of working out and constant theatre practice have given him a considerable figure, along with his naturally tall height and well-sculpted face--

She suddenly just stops place, staring at Zen while he works out. “...Do some sit-ups and push-ups, just to train your core muscles a little,” Jaehee suggests, which is absolute bullshit. Nope, she just wants to see him do it. And Seven too, apparently, with how his video camera is still rolling and taking down the action.

Every sit-up is accompanied with a soft grunt, and when he does push-ups, it’s even worse. He stares right at the camera and winks now and then, sweat dripping down his face and onto his chest. He could probably do a handstand in a clown outfit and still look sexy with that expression on his face. He did teach himself all that he knows, after all, chasing after a dream no one believed he could achieve.

So of course he’s good at charming. Jaehee has to purposefully tear her eyes away from Zen’s abs when she realizes her entire face is heating up.

“ _Perfect cut,_ ” Seven declares. “Now, Jaehee, hold this camera. Film the two of us.”

“...Alright,” Jaehee agrees, taking the camera. She assumes they’re going to do some embarrassing handshake, but when Seven walks up to Zen, he immediately throws his arms apart. "Now, Zen, throw me!”

_What._

Jaehee has no time to yell that she hasn’t taught Zen how to do that yet. Zen doesn’t hesitate-- he grabs Seven’s arm and yanks it, throwing him off balance. Then, he gets into position, rushing closer to Seven and grabbing his back. He then completes the throw, picking Seven up crudely and tossing him over his shoulder on the mats.

It’s a much rougher throw than Jaehee’s, but it works. Seven lies dazed on the mats for a moment, while Zen shoots the camera a wink with a thumbs-up.

“You’re both terrible,” Jaehee sighs.

\---

“Jaehee.”

Jaehee has gotten less scared of Jumin’s summons, and stands to attention a little less stiffly. “Yes?”

“The viral video, with Zen,” Jumin begins. “I believe Seven filmed it with you?”

Oh, it’s about that. “Yes. Is anything the matter?”

“No. Even if I feel the entire video is unnecessarily vain, Seven is definitely very good at editing and making sure only Zen’s good side was on camera,” Jumin says. “And it’s a good thing you were cut out, too. With all the new fans he’s getting, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them started a witch hunt for any girl they see talking to him in the video.”

Jaehee sweats. “His newfound popularity must be handled carefully, I agree. But, Mr. Han, why are you bringing this up…?”

Jumin walks towards his private office, and Jaehee follows him. “I see you spend a lot of time speaking with Zen in the chatroom, and you’ve had a seat reserved for you in his next musical.” He opens the door beckoning Jaehee to come in, before closing it behind them.

Jumin sits at the chair. Jaehee feels like he’s going to be interrogated. What now? Did Zen do something stupid, and now their friendship is compromised? What’s going on--

“Jaehee, do you have feelings for Zen?”

Jaehee nearly spits. “What-- no. No, I don’t. What makes you think that?”

Jumin relaxes, a bit too visibly. “Thank God. Then it’s just a big misunderstanding, then.”

“I’m not interested in romance at all, Mr. Han. I watch musicals, but that’s it. I have no intention of acting out any of those scenes in real life, and I doubt Zen wants to either,” Jaehee says in exasperation. “We are both married to our work. Besides, even though he does frequently complain about not having a girlfriend, I highly doubt he would consider _me._ Perhaps when he’s incredibly desperate, but not now.”

“I think so as well,” Jumin says. “It’s just that…”

“That?”

“Rika told me to talk to you two. In case you two did like each other more than friends,” Jumin explains. “It would be ‘nice for the RFA to have another couple’, or something along those lines.”

“Oh.” Jaehee hasn’t spoken to Rika in person since they met almost four months ago. The party is coming up soon in two more, and Zen’s musical is just rounding the corner. She’s already asked for leave on that day, which Jumin has thankfully approved, so that won’t be a problem. It’s just… “How is the party coming along?”

Jumin puts his hands together. “It’s coming together well. In the next few weeks, though, we’ll have to deal with a lot of logistical information. Many important guests are coming. No mistakes will be tolerated.”

“I understand.”

“Well, in that case--” Jumin gets out of his seat. “In the future, if you really do end up liking Zen, just know that I disapprove.”

Jaehee raises an eyebrow. “What?”

“I just don’t like it.”

“That… doesn’t answer anything. I have no interest in him, but still…”

“Get back to work, Jaehee.”

\---

On the day of the musical, Jaehee dresses in her normal work clothes, as if she’s going to a meeting instead. Zen meets her briefly at the front of house, and stares at her outfit. “One of these days, I’m going to bring you shopping to buy a _real_ dress.”

“Well, it’s not today,” Jaehee replies.

Yoosung and Seven are attending too. V and Rika are busy again, unfortunately, trying to organize the party. Meanwhile, Jumin is god-knows-where, doing more work for the company than even the extremely overworked Jaehee herself. Of course, he also gets to pocket the gigantic profits the company makes, which is a significantly greater motivator than a meagre secretarial salary.

Yoosung, Seven and Jaehee all sit in a row near the middle, with a perfect view of the stage. “This is going to be great,” Yoosung chirps. “I don’t like Zen’s vanity, but his acting and singing is nothing to scoff at! His dancing has been getting better too.”

Seven just munches noisily on some popcorn. “Want some?”

Jaehee stares incredulously. “Where did you get that? There’s no food allowed in here.”

Seven shrugs.

The musical starts grandly enough for Jaehee to take her mind off Seven’s flagrant disregard for the rules. The violin track begins as the stage flurries to life, bursting in color with all the bright actors and actresses dancing across the stage. Zen only appears halfway through the opening sequence, after a stunning solo by the female lead, and it’s a surprise that Zen can even make up to her vocals at all-- but he does, and everyone dances to cue, betraying the months and months of practice for just these few seconds of song.

It’s hard to not get enraptured, after a while.

Jaehee hangs on every word, and increasingly gets emotionally invested in the story. It’s unfortunate, because the script is honestly pretty mediocre, but the way all the actors just put themselves into it-- even a ridiculous story is believable. Yoosung is staring, leaning forward with his huge purple eyes fixed on the stage. Seven has stopped munching on popcorn.

 _”Oh, Jomeo, Jomeo, wherefore art thou Jomeo?”_ The woman tosses open the windows. The set is marvelous, and Jomeo-- er, _Zen’s_ entrance, even more so. He slides right onto the stage from the side, rose clenched between his teeth, eyes sparkling and shirt wide open.

Someone in the front row faints.

“Shall I speak now, or shall I hear more of this?” Zen’s voice is lower than usual, perhaps even sultry, and some people start squealing. It’s rather annoying, but at the same time, also understandable. The scene plays out dramatically as the woman weeps on her balcony, and Jaehee’s on the edge of her seat, wondering how the hell Jomeo is going to get Ruliet away from the strong-fisted communist bloc and resolve the nation-wide feud between--

The man sitting next to Jaehee laughs, whispering a bit too loudly to his girlfriend. “It’s so obvious the only reason this play is worth shit is because of all their looks. Seriously, look at them.”

“Of course, that’s how all plays work,” she whispers back, and they both laugh. “I’ll admit though, the male lead’s got a nice body. He should just quit acting and go into modeling. He’d probably suck less at looking pretty.”

Jaehee’s eye twitches. “He couldn’t even finish up the dance cue without almost slipping several times! Did he even practice?”

“Yeah, right? He’s dragging down everyone else’s performance. It’s--”

“Excuse me,” Jaehee interrupts. “But can you two shut up?”

Silence. Seven makes an _ooooh shit_ expression. “If you think he is so bad at dancing,” Jaehee continues, “how about after the performance, you can criticize him and show him how it’s done? I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.”

The man huffs, and gets up. “Let’s go, I hate rabid fangirls.”

Jaehee rolls her eyes while they leave. “...What did I miss?”

Yoosung blinks. “Zen just threw someone! Like how to taught him. You didn’t see it at all?” Jaehee curses under her breath.

\---

“Ugh… I knew I should’ve slept for longer before this debut night,” Zen groans. Everyone’s cleared the backstage and almost all the audience has left, but Yoosung, Seven and Jaehee have been waiting for Zen. “This sucks. I messed up the cues so many times. God, I don’t even know if I’ll be able to get another role after this show’s over…”

Jaehee starts up Seven’s car, and they begin making for Seven’s place, since it’s much closer to crash there. “Trust me, almost no one in the audience noticed,” Yoosung half-lies. He certainly didn’t.

“Some of it was pretty obvious, but it’s fine. Didn’t ruin the show,” Seven adds on. Zen deflates further.

“It was fantastic,” Jaehee says to try to lighten the mood. “Even with hiccups, the story got through, and that’s what mattered. You got a standing ovation at the end, and the audience cheered when you bowed. I think that’s sign enough that they enjoy it.”

Zen sighs even more loudly. “Are they clapping because of my acting, or my looks?”

“I’m sure that while your looks contribute, your skills are what truly carried you through,” Jaehee reasons. “Even if you were the most handsome man in the world--”

“--oh, _even if?_ I’m hurt, Jaehee--”

“--the point is, you’d be unable to engage an audience for long without good acting. And your singing was spot on. You hit all the high notes easily.”

Seven nods. “Jaehee’s right. You didn’t do too badly!”

“I need a cigarette,” Zen mutters. “Seven. Your house. Does it have cigarettes?”

“Nope.”

“This was a mistake. I can’t sleep like this. You guys, you just watched one night, but I have six more ahead of me. Full dress rehearsals back to back are fine, but the real thing, over and over…”

“You will sleep, and you won’t need to smoke,” Jaehee emphasizes. “You’re exhausted as it is. Just forget about the day’s woes for a moment. I admit, it is easier said than done, but…”

Seven pats Zen on the back. “It’s OK! I’ve got a ton of Honey Buddha Chips to last your through your tears.”

Yoosung shakes his head. “Don’t say that, Seven. Actors are sensitive, he might actually cry.”

Zen chokes. “I am _not crying!_ ”

When they turn up at Seven’s house, Seven locks himself in his room, saying he has work to do. He’s at least bothered to clean up the couches a bit, so Yoosung and Zen have a place to sleep. “I can help drive you home,” Jaehee offers to Yoosung.

“Ahh, no, it’s alright. I wouldn’t want to bother you,” Yoosung says. And it doesn’t quite matter, anyway. Once Yoosung pulls on a blanket, he’s out like a light. He’s just not used to staying up past his bedtime.

Zen, in the meanwhile, just stares at the ceiling. Even after Jaehee washes up in the bathroom and gets rid of all her make-up for the ride back home, Zen’s still lying there in the same place, eyes very much open.

Jaehee walks up to him. “It won’t help to stay awake.”

“I know you’re right, Jaehee,” he sighs. He tries not to raise his voice, since Yoosung’s snoring away next to them. “But…”

“Do you want me to get sleeping pills for you? I can drive down to the convenience store.”

“No, I wouldn’t want to trouble you. Plus, those things are poison.”

“They can’t be any more poisonous than a cigarette.”

Zen has no arguments for that. He turns around, lying on his side away from Jaehee, and in the darkness of the dimly lit living room, he asks:

“Jaehee, can you sing?”

“Why are you asking me that?”

“Well, can you?”

“Not very well,” she admits. “...Do you want me to sing you to sleep?”

“I don’t know any lullabies, so you’ll have to make them up,” Zen jokes, pulling up the blankets.

Jaehee closes her eyes for a moment, sitting on the other end of the couch. There’s a lullaby that sneaks around the crevices of her memories, one amongst the many her father sang to her when he still loved. One of the many that she still holds onto, even though she’s forgotten his voice, along with her mother’s.

She pats Zen on the back, like how her father did, and it feels a bit awkward, at first. But he doesn’t react, so she simply clears her throat, and-- sings.

“Like the sun in the sky… I am always here…”

Towards the end of the song, her voice trails off into a whisper as she realizes Zen’s eyes are glued shut. She switches off the lights completely and takes care not to step on the potato chip packets left all over the floor, only making a noise when she opens the door. She closes it behind her, and the lullaby of waiting for the sun to rise rings in her head.

\---

JUMIN: Jaehee.  
JUMIN: The day you took leave was one of the busiest this entire year.  
JUMIN: Stay back over the weekend. You’ll need to stay late for this entire week too.  
JAEHEE: ...Really…  
JUMIN: Don’t worry about the pay. I’ll double it for the short notice.  
JUMIN: It’ll be easy money.  
JAEHEE: It’s not just about that, you know… 

Zen has joined the chatroom.

ZEN: Nope.  
ZEN: I don’t approve of this.  
JUMIN: What?  
ZEN: Jaehee’s human too. She needs some breathing space.  
JAEHEE: Thank you, Zen.  
JUMIN: ...Well. Even so, this work isn’t going to do itself.  
ZEN: ...I was almost gonna make a joke there, but… do itself…  
JUMIN: What?  
JUMIN: What’s wrong with that?  
ZEN: Nothing.  
ZEN: Anyway.  
ZEN: If she really has to do it eventually, postpone it to next week.  
JAEHEE: Huh?  
ZEN: Once our musical’s first run is over, I’ll have free time.  
ZEN: So we can go and make it less terrible for her.  
ZEN: After all…  
ZEN: What kind of idol would I be, if I didn’t do my very best for my most loyal fan?  
JAEHEE: I  
JAEHEE: I am not  
JUMIN: Fine. I can postpone it.  
JUMIN: I hope whatever you’re planning doesn’t create a ruckus.  
ZEN: Oh! Not at all, Mr. Trust Fund Kid.  
ZEN: By the way…  
ZEN: All rich corporations have a piano in their lobby, right?  
JAEHEE: ?  
JUMIN: Ours does.  
ZEN: Perfect. Hang on for us, Jaehee!

The next week, only Rika is too busy to come on all days. Yoosung volunteers to run errands for Jaehee, buying her whatever food she wanted and bringing it to her desk, or even doing paperwork (she politely, but sternly, declines). Seven offers to hack the database and shut down the organization so she can run away, and he gets thrown out. Even V arrives, if only to have a drink with Jumin and calm his nerves so he doesn’t push Jaehee even more in a frazzled state.

Zen takes residence at the piano. He plays every song that he knows, from every slow ballad to every modern pop song. He plays it just loudly enough for it to ricochet from the lobby to the floor Jaehee is on, if she strains a little to listen. Even as the woman crowd around him, asking for his autograph and begging him for a conversation, he simply continues playing, his voice clear enough to rise above the skies. At the end of each day, as the sun sets and Jaehee is the only one left is the building, Zen stays as well, and he plays a lullaby of waiting for the sun to rise.

“In this white world, you were the divine person, who brought color… I remember your smile in the photo vividly-- you were beautiful…”

“I can’t believe you managed to create a piano piece for this lullaby,” Jaehee says, finally stumbling out of the office lift. “After I’ve only sung it to you once.”

“Well, what can I say? I’m a natural,” Zen says with a wink. “I really like this part, though. _You can put up a facade, and hurt my feelings… you can hate me, and leave me…_ ”

His fingers slide across the piano almost effortlessly. “ _It doesn’t matter, because-- my love is as big as the sun-- it is a miracle of the sky…_ ”

“ _If the cold wind blows to where you are now, look up to the sky…_ ” Jaehee’s voice is nowhere as trained as Zen’s, and she has no natural gift, but she sings with feeling all the same. “ _If your loneliness twists your heart again, come back to the sun-- I’m waiting here for you._ ”

“It’s a rather depressing lullaby,” Zen admits. “But I don’t know what lullabies are like.”

“My father had a reason for singing it,” Jaehee says. And that is all Zen prys from her. He gets up, close the piano as he does, and they walk towards the entrance.

“It’s dangerous for a lady to walk back alone this late. I’ll accompany you,” Zen says.

Jaehee blinks. “No more motorbike?”

“Ah-- I got rid of that,” Zen says. Somehow, across the months, in the midst of all the work, he’s managed to hide the fact that he’s had to go to the hospital for a motorcycle wreck. V was the one who was there, and the only one that has to know. It’ll be a funny story for a future day.

“That’s good,” Jaehee says. And Zen just laughs, but not loudly enough to wake the sun.

\---

When Jaehee attends the party, Rika’s entire apartment smells of cherry.

Against his better judgment, or perhaps because of it, Jumin has ordered Jaehee to bring Elizabeth the 3rd along. Most of the guests think of her as absolutely adorable, but it’s stressful to bring a cat to such a crowded area, and she spends most of the party jumping around Jaehee and climbing all over Jumin. “I will never again wound you like this for the sake of presenting myself with a better image, Elizabeth,” Jumin profusely apologizes. Jaehee kind of just groans through the whole ordeal.

Yoosung has grown more sociable, perhaps due to Rika’s positive influence. He’s shaking hands with all the top university admission deans, and it’s not hard to see what he’s gunning for. Seven is gorging himself on the food, while Zen is _as far away from Jumin and Jaehee as possibly can be_ , because he doesn’t want to deal with a sneezing fit right now or ever. He eventually finds someone who brought a portable electronic piano and starts playing, swaying the atmosphere to his whims. Almost like a real star, Jaehee muses.

V is offering photo taking services, and even polaroids, though he mostly thinks of them as a cheap money-making scheme. It works, just as planned, and the money just flows.

After escaping from Elizabeth’s clutches, Jaehee pours herself a nice, big cup of red wine and walks out to the balcony. Surprisingly enough, she finds Rika there, her brightness standing out in the late evening.

“The party is a huge success,” Jaehee greets her with. Rika turns to face Jaehee, eyes like the sun, and Jaehee realizes she has not looked into those eyes for six months now. “Thank you for all the hard work, Rika.”

“Oh, don’t say that yet. The party isn’t over,” Rika laughs. “How are things, Jaehee? Has Jumin been overworking you still?”

Jaehee just lets out a loud sigh before taking a sip of wine. “Does it ever end? At least he pays well.”

Rika looks up at the sky. “I suppose that’s true. But don’t you feel that sometimes, time is more important than money?”

“I’m working towards a peaceful, early retirement. If I don’t at least have that…” Jaehee swirls her drink. “I will curse the world.”

Rika giggles, before patting Jaehee reassuringly on the back. “That’s a good goal. But don’t get caught up in that. Sometimes, things just don’t go that way. It’s better to set short-term sights along with an overarching long-term one. So, even if the future you’ve planned for becomes impossible… you won’t get lost.”

“You’re so wise. We speak for the first time in ages, and you give me life advice,” Jaehee sighs. “I understand what you mean. Sometimes, things don’t go as planned.”

(Jaehee should know this more than anyone.)

“Do you have any goals that don’t extend to retirement, then?” Rika has a way to getting people to open up, and Jaehee is no exception.

Jaehee takes another gulp. “Well… I’m not sure. But… I have always like coffee. I have always like baking, as well. Perhaps I could become a barista.”

Rika nods enthusiastically, smile widening. “Or you could open your own cafe! _Kang’s Cremes and Cakes!_ ”

That actually manages to get a laugh out of Jaehee. “Perhaps, just to have a shop with a name like that, yes.” With Rika’s words alone, it feels like she could raise the sun.

The both fall into silence for a moment, watching the moon sift out from beneath the clothes. “Oh, and that song Zen is playing… he said it’s your father’s lullaby,” Rika brings up. Jaehee nods. “He must be very talented. Is he a musician?”

“No,” Jaehee says, shaking her head. “I heard V’s mother was. But my father was a normal man.”

Rika picks up on the use of _was,_ and gets the implication. “But he was still a good father,” Jaehee adds on.

“Mm. Sorry if I brought up something sensitive,” Rika apologizes.

“It’s fine. It’s common knowledge I’m an orphan,” Jaehee explains. “I’ve grown past it. If I remember anything about my parents, it is that they would not want me to grieve them.”

“It sounds like you must have fond memories of them. Hang onto that,” Rika says. And for a moment, their eyes meet again. There’s something strange about Rika’s expression, a flicker of something between doubt and melancholy, something Jaehee hasn’t seen before. It surprises her, because she has only ever seen Rika with a smile.

Rika taps Jaehee’s wine glass. “Don’t drink too much. Call someone to drive you back home if you get tipsy.” With that, she walks away, hair swishing around her shoulders, leaving Jaehee alone on the balcony in the creeping moonlight.

(It is only years in the future that Jaehee will realize-- it is jealousy. That expression is jealousy.)

\---

(Just as easily as it rises, the sun sets.)

\---

ZEN: Jaehee!  
ZEN: Did you hear about Rika?  
JAEHEE: Yes.  
JAEHEE: I can’t believe it…  
JAEHEE: How?  
JAEHEE: Why?  
ZEN: I don’t think anyone can…  
ZEN: I’m not sure what to do.  
ZEN: What are you doing now?  
JAEHEE: I’m not sure myself.  
JAEHEE: I suppose  
JAEHEE: I’m just waiting for the sun to rise.

**Author's Note:**

> next up: fucked up Rika/V shit, interluded with fucked up one sided Jumin/Rika shit
> 
> im ready for the sweet embrace of hell
> 
> REAL NOTES:  
> \--Flitz coffee company = Fritz coffee company. legit place in seoul. awesome coffee, great atmosphere, hot barista who could speak english, 10/10 would recommend  
> \--Lying King = Lion King. Sicked = Wicked. lol  
> \--the first time i heard the epilogue sound was after playing Jaehee route and I thought it was unique to her route and thought it was like, the song her father sang to her for some reason. so that's why lol.  
> \--jaehee says you are her first close female friend, so i'm assuming life got in the way of rika and jaehee talking much before rika [expunged]  
> \--jaehee and zen are adorable and get along well while being 10000% platonic. favs  
> \--i dont actually have an encyclopedic knowledge of all the fucking routes so if i got anything wrong, tell me  
> \--rika best girl  
> \--rika my love, my life, my  
> \--r i k a
> 
> add me on twitter @empressyuan


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